Contains video examples of the use of plug-in that will help beginners to learn.

In this age of digital color imagery we sometimes forget the subtle beauty of Black and White. Lightroom’s Black and White conversion features are indeed superb. But if you want to take it up a notch take a look at Silver Efex Pro 2. Here is some background from Nik Software…

Nik Software is now shipping Silver Efex Pro™ 2, a major upgrade to its award-winning Silver Efex Pro software. Many photographers regard Silver Efex Pro as the leading solution for creating black-and-white images, delivering new features, better performance, and an improved workflow.
“Nearly every pro I know already uses Silver Efex Pro to create their B&W conversions, but I can tell you this: they’ll all be upgrading to version 2 the minute it comes out. It’s that good!” said Scott Kelby, President, National Association of Photoshop Professionals (NAPP). “Nik Software really gets the whole user experience for photographers, and you can see that attention to detail throughout Silver Efex Pro 2. When it comes to creating fine art black and white conversions, this changes everything,” Kelby concluded.

Silver Efex Pro 2 introduces new features that offer even more control over image detail, contrast, and tonality, making it easier to go beyond the limits of the traditional darkroom. The software’s new features include the History Browser for endless experimentation, revolutionary algorithms such as Dynamic Brightness, Amplify Blacks and Whites, Soft Contrast, and Fine Structure, plus finishing touches like Image Borders and selective colorization.

Nik Software’s proprietary U Point technology provides revolutionary selective editing by enabling photographers to make the precise detail, contrast, and tonality enhancements necessary for amazing black-and-white images, without the need for complicated selections or layer masks. The selective enhancements applied through U Point technology are automatically blended throughout an image for natural results.

Key Features

New History Browser facilitates intuitive comparison of previous edits and different looks
New Dynamic Brightness enables adaptive brightening adjustments for different areas in the image
New Amplify Blacks and Amplify Whites increases the presence of highlights and shadows adaptively throughout the image, creating a unique contrast effect
New Visual Presets categorized by photographic style provide great, single-click starting points, which can be edited and shared with others
New Soft Contrast applies contrast intelligently, based on image details, creating a less harsh contrast and a stylized mood
New Fine Structure brings out even the smallest details and textures resulting in more visible image detail without creating an over-sharpened look
New Image Borders use organic image elements to create unique and completely random borders, giving classic darkroom-style edges a modern look with infinite possibilities
New Selective colorization easily adds color elements back into images utilizing
U Point technology to precisely select objects
New GPU Processing takes full advantage of the processors found on advanced display adapters providing even faster performance